8 with 8

This week, we’re talking with our colleagues in Hudson City Schools about their work on educational equity. For those who don’t focus on this regularly, here’s how the Ohio Department of Education and Workforce defined it back in 2020: Each child has access to relevant and challenging academic experiences and educational resources necessary for success across race, gender, ethnicity, language, dis...

In this episode, we are going to talk about one of the biggest innovations in the world right now, artificial intelligence or AI. We're sure this isn't the first time you're hearing of it or consider how it can be applied in an educational setting. Much of what is being discussed about AI in education is, of course, focused on its teaching and learning applications… which makes sense,...

In this week's episode, Michelle Smith and Heidi Kerchenski from our team are talking with colleagues in Green Local Schools about an extremely creative and impactful partnership they have developed with the Starbucks Coffee location in their community.  What started as Starbuck's general interest in supporting the local district has grown into a robust partnership in so many innovative wa...

This week, we are discussing the many strategies utilized in Akron Public Schools to create consistency and high-fidelity implementation of Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports (otherwise known as PBIS). Nearly every district we work with, of every size, situation, and location, finds that it is extremely challenging to get all buildings doing the same thing - or at least meeting district...

In this episode, we’ll shine the spotlight on the work of Woodridge Local Schools in Summit County. SST8 has had the great privilege of partnering with Woodridge Local on the development of Early Warning Systems to increase graduation and reduce dropout, through a state project called Each Child on Track. Using a tiered model, the Woodridge team is working across all corners of the district to dev...

Today we’re interviewing Barberton Preschool (BPS) and learning how they make magic happen with our youngest readers. As one of only two districts in our region taking part in Ohio’s Comprehensive Literacy State Development Grant, BPS was able to identify what was working well: collaboration, culture, leadership and then use the CLSD resources to build upon those areas while also strengthening are...

Today, as we continue to delve into the huge priority of chronic absenteeism, we want to shine the spotlight on Springfield Local Schools in Region 8. Springfield is a district just outside of Akron that had a huge hill to climb in terms of increasing student attendance, with more than 4 in 10 students chronically absent (meaning they were absent for at least 10% of school days) in 2021-2022. By w...

We're kicking off Season 10 with a focus on chronic absenteeism, a topic that has garnered increasing attention and concern over the past few years. Today, SST8’s own Frank Gant will talk to Zach Miley , Wellness Initiatives Coordinator at Summit ESC - two regional leaders working individually and collaboratively to help area districts identify the barriers to attendance as well as the strateg...

As we wind down the school year, we know that folks have been giving it their all for a very long time and may be feeling tired - or even, a bit uninspired. But when we at SST8 look around, we see no shortage of inspiration in the creative and innovative ways our local colleagues are tackling today’s challenges and opportunities in education. So this season, we are bringing you another series of i...

Check out a BONUS episode of 8 with 8, where we re-air another great educational podcast: Take the Lead, an Ashland University Professional Learning Podcast . We were delighted to have SST8’s own Pam Kennedy (Regional Early Literacy Specialist or RELS) invited to be on Take the Lead recently. She was so excited to share about the great literacy work going on statewide and in region 8. The Take the...

This week we wind down our season of co-teaching chronicles, exploring the myriad types of partnerships and collaborations that can best support students with and without disabilities in the general education setting. Tracy and Mike talk to two of Kent City Schools’ co-teachers from Stanton Middle School in Kent Ohio, which is a 6th through 8th grade building. The two teams we meet today are Ashle...

Co-teaching in a preschool setting is not a common configuration, but one that is extremely powerful when attempting to meet the needs of a classroom that spans many ages and developmental needs. As there has been a push toward serving young children with disabilities in typical early learning environments, rather than special education classrooms, co-teaching has become an increasingly important...

In this episode we meet Jamie Lormeau, former building principal with Cloverleaf Local Schools in Medina. She shares her personal experience with us and a principal's "recipe" for successfully implementing co-teaching as a building leader. Many of the "ingredients" she shares will sound familiar to those who are familiar with the work of Gately and Gately. With any great re...

In this episode we meet Amber Smith & Paula Funfgeld - a co-teaching team at Cloverleaf Elementary School in Medina County. They are joined by building principal Karen Martin. This team, and their fearless leader, share with our listeners their journey in co-teaching, and how they leverage each others’ strengths. One of the best compliments to co-teachers is when a classroom visitor can’t tell...

Medina High School's award-winning co-teaching team has been recognized by the district for the great work they are doing. Anne Fortney and Kelly Miller are the the two stars of the this dynamic duo, sometimes referred to by their colleagues as the Wonder Twins. They share with us what their superpowers look like in the co-taught classroom. They are joined by Ronda French, Medina City Schools&...

We are continuing to capture the ups, downs, ins, and outs of co-teaching… and we’re back today with two co-teaching teams from Wadsworth High School, “living the co-teaching dream” as our co-host Tracy Mail says, to support math and science. This week’s episode really highlights the alchemy of co-teaching. Personality dynamics, curriculum, student needs, and educator skills and preferences all ha...

Today we’re getting a window into what co-teaching is like at a career center - specifically Portage Lakes Career Center. This pair of teachers, Diane Forrest (from General Ed) and Nikki Weigand (intervention specialist) work together to teach English Language Arts for 11th and 12th grade students. They are joined by Tina Saley, PLCC's assistant principal, in talking about how support for stud...

SST8 has been doing a lot of work to support co-teachers over the past two years, and we have met some incredible educators with great stories and insights into co-teaching. Today's episode features Towpath Trail High School, a dropout recovery and prevention community school located in Akron. Their team is creative and dedicated bunch that go above and beyond to meet their students’ where the...

Welcome to the 9th season of the 8 with 8 podcast: The Co-Teaching Chronicles . The big idea behind co-teaching is that when general and special educators pair up to co-plan, co-instruct, and co-assess their students, it should provide instruction and support that is substantively better than what each teacher could provide on their own. But, like many collaborative endeavors, co-teaching is HARD...

As we wrap up this season’s exploration of the essential questions we should ALL be asking about special education, based on Ohio’s Special Education Profile, we have a great conversation for you with one of our favorite colleagues at the Ohio Department of Education, Amy Szymanski. Amy is the Secondary Transition and Workforce Development Consultant in the Office for Exceptional Children. In the...

What does the movie Grease have to do with the Special Education Profile? Today’s essential question about special education focuses on students’ readiness for life beyond school: Are youth with disabilities prepared for life, work, and postsecondary education? From the perspective of Ohio's Special Education Profile, this essential question covers Indicators 1, 2, 13, and 14. In other words, at w...

“Dispro” is a term familiar to seasoned special education leaders, but may not ring a bell for other educators. It refers to disproportionality, or significant disparities in our data regarding how we identify, serve, and discipline student with disabilities from various racial and ethnic groups. From the perspective of the Special Education Profile, it would seem pretty clear - you either have th...

Welcome back to our season focused on critical questions we all need to be asking about special education. Today we are focusing on an essential  question that actually gets a lot of attention because it focuses on compliance. However, in today's episode we will bring to light the REAL reason why dotting our i’s and crossing our t’s in special education is so critical - and spoiler alert, it’...

We’re really enjoying this opportunity to dig into the most essential questions of special education - and we’re loving the feedback we’ve gotten from our colleagues and across the state who have found these episodes helpful! Today’s essential question, taken from Ohio’s Special Education Profile, is this: To what extent do students with disabilities have access to the general education environmen...

Ohio currently ranks 31st in the country with regard to education of our young people and one has to wonder, "why? What can we be doing differently to improve the academic outcomes of our students?" Join us as SST8 consultants interview Bernadette Laughlin, Education Program Specialist with the Office for Exceptional Children, to discuss state, district, and classroom level practices that can infl...